New Delhi, October 29, 2021. As per new consumer insights by CyberMedia Research (CMR), India’s trusted technology research and consulting firm, the month-long festive season sales this year highlight a strong and renewed consumer optimism, with 7 in every 10 consumers excited to shop this season.

“Our consumer survey projects a positive uptick in consumer outlook this festive season. On the back of India’s mass vaccination drive, and growing economic recovery, the survey results paint a positive and resilient picture for the festive sales. The two dominant consumer cohorts driving these festive sales, include the aspirational, value-conscious consumers fuelling online sales on large e-commerce platforms, and the upwardly-mobile consumers engaging in revenge buying for premium offerings on niche ecommerce platforms.” said Prabhu Ram, Head-Industry Intelligence Group (IIG), CyberMedia Research (CMR).

 Online is the preferred shopping destination. For more than 65% of those surveyed, online shopping is the preferred shopping mode, while 35% prefer a mix of online and offline retail for making informed choices. This pandemic-induced shift in consumer buying behavior will gain permanence in the never-normal.

Value conscious buyers dominate the festive sales. Though a segment of consumers got hit by pandemic, the festive sales this year are fueled by the aspirational consumers in Tier-II and Tier- III cities.

Revenge shopping by upwardly mobile. On the other hand, after months of being at home, upwardly mobile consumers are indulging in revenge buying.

Smartphones (37%), consumer electronics (30%) and home appliances (30%) are on top of the shopping lists of consumers this festive season.

Willingness to spend by consumers. On an average, consumers are potentially seeking to spend close to 25% of their monthly salary on the festive sales. The primary purchase motivators include attractive offers (48%), new models launched (41%), and no-cost EMI or pay later offers (33%).

Close to 75% of those surveyed indicated their support for local retailers, with festive purchases for Diwali from them. The major consumer considerations for online and offline purchases include brand trust (74%), brand familiarity (67%), product quality(63%), and value for money (37%), for amongst others.

“The heightened positive consumer sentiment augurs well for retailers, offering them a potential path to recovery from the COVID-induced losses. The growing ease, acceptance and adoption of digital payments, beyond the traditional digital natives, is fueling retail purchases online and driving sales this festive season,” said Sugandha Shrivastava, Research Manager, Industry Consulting Group (ICG), CyberMedia Research (CMR).

About the CMR Consumer Barometer

The CMR Consumer Barometer based on a digital survey covering 4000 consumers from SEC A, B and C. The study was conducted across Tier I, II and III cities.

For results based on a randomly chosen sample of this size, there is 95% confidence that the results have a statistical precision of plus or minus 2% of what they would be if the entire population had been surveyed.